Construction of Tuskegee Airmen memorial to take place this summer

EDGEWORTH — To fourth-grade band members at Quaker Valley elementary schools, “Tuskegee Airmen,” is no longer just the name of a song in their spring concert lineup.

On Friday, the band students at Edgeworth Elementary got to see the names and faces of some local men — and a woman — who were part of the World War II black fighter pilots that inspired the tune, now known as the Tuskegee Airmen.

The presentation, which band pupils at Osborne Elementary also will see on Wednesday, was given by Regis Bobonis, Sewickley historian and chairman of the Tuskegee Airmen Memorial of Greater Pittsburgh.

Bobonis has been researching the region’s historic connection to the Tuskegee Airmen for 15 years and has spent the last six planning a project to build a monument in honor of the local airmen in the Sewickley Cemetery.

Bobonis never imagined the monument project would grow to this size and he said construction is finally expected to begin within the next two months, after a bid for concrete work is selected. A dedication ceremony is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 15.

“We’re ready to go at long last,” he said.

The memorial, designed by Rome Monument of Rochester, will include 95 names and counting, all from western Pennsylvania.

“The story continues to grow,” said Bobonis, who frequently finds new links between the area and the airmen. “There’s quite a story from just the Beaver County perspective that we have found another three men.”

Bobonis and project consultant Rich Dieter of Crescendo Group Consultants Inc. in McKees Rocks, said the construction of the monument has been financed by private and corporate donations as well as grant funding, though small portions of the project are still available for sponsorship.

The memorial plaza will include the original white granite centerpiece with a porcelain tile portrait painted by Youngstown, Ohio, artist Ray Simon, flanked by two ebony granite markers with the names of the airmen. A new design revealed last fall also made the monument handicap-accessible and added four reflecting benches and a large monument with a replica of the legendary red-tail planes flown by the airmen.

Bobonis said the memorial committee also will unveil an educational exhibit at Pittsburgh International Airport this fall.

The exhibit, to be located on the airside terminal near the entrance to Gate A, will feature large murals and photographs of the local Tuskegee airmen, as well as information plaques and videos, Dieter said.

“We are so excited about just that piece alone,” Bobonis said.

Bobonis and Dieter said many more projects are in the works and an entire week of events will be planned in conjunction with the formal dedication of the memorial and ribbon-cutting at the airport.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.